R 1 



E78 
N77B5 



LETTERS 

OP THE 




ARCHBISHOP OF OREGON CITY, 



ON THE 

CATHOLIC INDIAN MISSIONS 

OF THE 

STATE OF OREGON AND TERRITORIES OF WASHINGTON, 
IDAHO AND MONTANA, 

together with the 

REPLY OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR. 

— m u.s.a. )) 

PORTLAND, OREGON: 

Herman & Atkinson, Catholic Sentinel Job Print, 
1871. 



£76 
A11BS 



f 3» 



LETTER 

— OF — 




— TO THE — 

COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. 



Portland, Oregon, July 8, 1871. 
E. S. PARKER, COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS— 

Honorable Sir : The shufflings of the Methodists have forced 
Mr. Charles Lafollet, Indian Agent at Grand Ronde, to give in 
his resignation. As soon as I heard of it, I immediately sent a 
telegram to you to beg of you not to accept it, until you heard 
from me. And now begging leave to make some preliminary 
remarks before exposing my reasons for the step I have taken, 
I first say, for your own information, that every Catholic Bishop 
represents the Catholic Church in his diocese, and that such is 
the position of the Right Rev. A. M. A. Blanchet, Bishop of 
Nesqualy,in the Territory of Washington, and mine, also, in the 
State of" Oregon ; and next, I frankly declare that the new 
policy of the President, in dividing the care of the Indians 
among the various religious denominations, has proved to be 
far from being as favorable to our Indian Catholic missions as 
it would at first appear to be. I soon discovered my error in 
this respect, when, induced by that policy to expose to you by 
letter of January 27th, 1871, the rights I have to the care of 
the Umatilla, Warm Spring, Grand Ronde, and other Indian 
Reservations, with the full hope that my rights would be ac- 
knowledged and respected, and justice so long delayed, would 
T?is^ be done to us, I was made aware by your answer of 



4 

February 23d, 1871, that the matter was already settled, the 
reservations distributed, and no change intended. And how 
had this repartition been made ? The Honorable Commissioners 
at Washington, being all Protestants, and as such having no 
serious disposition to f . vor our Catholic Indian Missions, as- 
signed, out of thirty-eight reservations, only four to the Catho- 
lics and thirty-four to the Protestants; whereas, had due re- 
gard been paid to the earnest wishes of the Indians, and to" '-the 
rights of our Church for prior instructions, nearly three-quarters, 
viz, 28 1-2, would have been allotted to the Catholics. How 
to characterize such a glaring partiality, I do not know. 

But our lot is still worse «on this western coast; for, of 
all the Indian reservations of the Territories of Wash- 
ington, Idaho, Montana and the State of Oregon, not 
one of them — not even a single one has been adjudged 
to the Catholics, but all have been given to the Metho- 
dist Church by the generous Indian Commissioners, as if these 
learned gentlemen had been altogether ignorant and perfectly 
certain there was no Catholic Church on this part of our great 
Republic, notwithstanding its entering on this coast with the 
expeditions, by land and by sea, of Mr. Astor, in 1811, and its 
more visible existence by the arrival of two Catholic priests in 
1838, and by their preaching and converting thousands of In- 
dians, from Colville to Chinook Point, from the South of Ore- 
gon to Frazer river and Bear lake, and in a special manner on 
Puget Sound in 1839 and the following years; and all that, 
without waiting for the subsidies of the Government. Who then 
but our learned Commissioners can ignore these facts and the 
history of our Catholic missions among the Indians on our 
western coast? Namely, besides the two priests who arrived 
in 1838, and two others in 1842, the arrival of Rev. Father de 
Smet in the Rocky mountains, in 1840, and his hard and suc- 
cessful labors with his zealous co-operators among the Flat 
Heads, Kalispels, Pen d'Oreilles, Kootnays and other tribes; the 
establishment oi the Yakima mission by Rev. Father D'Herbo- 
mez. now Bishop of British Columbia, and his full success there 
in hunger, thirst and need, with his indefatigable brethren, from 
1847, till the war of 1855 forced him to retire ; the mission of 
Rev. Father Brouillet among the Catholic Cayuses of Umatilla 



5 



from 1847 to 1848, and, alter the war, its continuation at Walla 
Walla, by Father Chirouse, from 1852 to 1856, when a new 
war force'd him to abandon it ; and its further continuation at 
the Umatilla reservation by Father Vermersch since 1866 to 
the present time ; the mission of Rev. Father Mesplie, at Dalles 
City, and his teaching the Indians of Wasco and neighborhood 
from 1848 to 1857 till these Indians were being taken away 
from him to be transfered to Warm Spring, seventy miles from 
Dalles ; in fine, the mission of Rev. Father Croquet, at Grand 
Ronde,from I860 to the present time, eleven years. With 
these facts staring them in the face, how could the Indian Com- 
missioners ignore the existence of the Catholic Church and the 
presence of Bishops and priests in active service m this country r 
Sappofling charitably that these facts were known to them, on 
what principle could they grant all the Indian reservations to 
the Methodists? And by what right could they wrest our 
Catholic Missions from our hands, to leave them m those of a 
sect diametrically opposed to our teaching? Did they think, 
perhaps, that Catholic Bishops and priests have no conscience, 
and no sense of their duty, and that they will humbly and silent- 
ly submit to such a crying injustice? No, they will not, for a 
good shepherd gives his life for his sheep. Such is the sad his- 
tory of our Indian Catholic Missions? Such are the grievous 
injustices done to us, and all that under a Government which 
boasts of being the freest and most liberal of all Go^ern- 

^Itl true that Rev. Father De Smet, by his exertions at 
Washington, has obtained the restitution of some of our Indian 
Missions on this coast ; but, nevertheless, those of Warm 
Spring, Grand Ronde, Yakima and others, still remain in the 
hands of the Methodists, under the direction of the Mission Board , 
of New York, with Mr. Wilbur, agent at Yakima reservation 
charged by the same Mission Board to prepare the lis t ot 
agents to be appointed. Now, any one knowing 
zeal of that man. who, some years ago, dared to forbid Father 
St Onge, the Catholic priest who attends the Catholic mission 
o Yakima, not only to pass over his reservation tat- even to 
teach the Indians outside of it, may easily understand what our 
Catholic missions may have to apprehend from his appointments. 



6 

This fact proves evidently that the new system of nomina- 
tion is far from being favorable and is a great deal more dan- 
gerous to our Indian missions, than the old one, in which were 
found agents appointed by the Government, men of liberal 
views, not only unwilling to interfere with our labors, such as 
Mr. Barnhart at Umatilla, but- also men so well disposed as to 
show themselves fathers to the Indians and the priest, such as 
Major Boyle, his successor. The Hon. Secretary of the Inter- 
ior seems to have been convinced that the Grand Ronde is a 
Catholic Mission, with a Catholic priest there since 1860. In 
consequence of this, fearing the danger of a Methodist agent 
there, and desiring peace and harmony with the priest and 
Catholics, he made such representations to the Methodist Mis- 
sion Board as to induce it to withdraw the nomination of Mr. 
Dyer, and to retain Captain Lafollet. Senator Corbett informed 
me of the fact by letter of March 17th, 1871, and since, my pe- 
tition for a Catholic agent has not been complied with ; and 
since Mr. Lafollet has not interfered with our labors there, and 
may be satisfactory to the Priest, I consented to the agreement. 
Therefore by it I stand, being altogether opposed to the ap- 
pointment of a Methodist agent. No doubt the fanatical zeal- 
ots among them would consider Mr. Lafollet not submissive 
and not pliant enough to their designs; therefore he has been 
accused and summoned to Salem; but he so cleary proved the 
charges made against him to be false that Mr. Stratton was 
forced to say: "I am satisfied that Mr. Lafollet has been mis- 
represented." Nevertheless, he has ever since been so much 
vexed and annoyed by the Church power and Church responsibility, 
as to have been induced to send in his resignation. I dread a 
Methodist nomination for the sake of peace and harmony ; if it 
take place, I dread trouble may come to the priest and to 
.Catholics. For these reasons, therefore, I entreat you not to ac- 
cept his resignation, but rather to confirm his position; consider- 
ing, also, that, in truth, Grand Ronde is a not a Methodist, but 
in reality a Catholic reservation, which I hope, trusting in the 
Government's justice, will be sooner or later given back to us; 
and that as such the nomination to the agency belong to us. 

In conclusion, accepting the agency of Captain Lafollet, in 
hopes he will not interfere with our labors, I must further de- 



7 

clare that I do solemnly protest, by the present, against the re- 
partition ot the Indian reservations made by the Commissioners, 
on this coast, giving the care and control ot our Indian Catholic 
missions to the Methodist Church ; and making an appeal to 
its sense of justice, I do earnestly entreat the Government to 
restore them to us. If this unjust distribution has been made 
knowingly and maliciously, it is the Government's duty to re- 
pair this injustice done by its employees. If, on the contrary, 
it was done innocently and ignorantly, then also it is incum- 
bent on the Government, better informed, to make reparation. 
And why should the Government refuse to render us justice? 
Is it because might is right and weakness wrong? Why should 
the Government have two weights and two measures — one for 
Protestants and another for Catholics; the first giving Lapwai 
reservation to the prior Protestant teachers, and the second, refus- 
ing Yakima, Warm Spring, Grand Ronde and Siletz to the 
prior Catholic teachers? Why should the Government be 
afraid of our teaching the Indians ? Is it not a well known 
fact that our labors for the civilization of the Indians is more 
successful and far superior to that of the Protestants ? Remem- 
ber the reductions of Paraguay ; go and visit the reservation of 
Rev. Father Chirouse, at Tulalip, and the missions of the Jesuit 
Fathers at the Rocky mountains, and afterwards go and visit 
some of the Protestant reservations, and you will < be able to 
understand the wide difference there is between the one and the 
other. And in order to give you an idea of what is done, at the 
expense of the Government, in the reservations kept by the 
Protestants, read the testimony of Capt. John Smith, the actual 
Methodist agent of Warm Spring, and see in what a poor con- 
dition he found the Indians of that place, who, having been 
taken away from the control of Father Mesplie, of Dalles, in 
1856, to be transferred to that reservation, had remained nine 
years under the control of Protestant agents, employees and 
teachers. Here are his words, taken from his letter of March 
22d, 1871, to the Dalles Mountaineer: "When I arrived here 
as agent in 1866, for the Wascos, Tinineos, Upper and Lower 
Des Chutes, known as the Confederate Tribes and bands of 
Middle Oregon, a more degraded and rascally set of human 
beings did not exist on the globe, I do believe. Whiskey 
drinking, gambling, polygamy, the custom of buying and sell- 



8 

ing women, and all known crimes, had full sway," notwith- 
standing their having been under the control, not of Father 
Mesplie, but, forsooth, under that of Protestant agents, em- 
ployees and teachers. And what was found there may also be 
found elsewhere. Such is the success of the Protestant rule, in 
general among the Indians. Ah, the Jesuit Fathers, without 
the Government subsidies, had succeeded in a few years, to re- 
duce to the Christian rule, and right civilization many of the 
barbarous tribes of the Rocky mountains. Had the poor Warm 
Spring Indians and others, been committed to their care, in less 
than nine years, no doubt, they would have brought them to a 
true Christian rule and right civilization. And how can Gov- 
ernment expect that the Indians may be brought to a true Chris- 
tian civilization by sects not Christian, but infidel ? No, we 
are not of those who think and say that all sects and various 
denominations are equally good, though teaching doctrines dia- 
diametrically opposed to each other. Our Lord and Saviour 
Jesus Christ did not teach these contradictory doctrines. Woe 
to the Indians to whom these contradictory doctrines are taught 
by dissenting sects ! 

Please understand well, honorable sir, that in all I have said 
in this already long letter, I have been but the humble advo- 
cate of our poor Indians, who have neither voice nor organ to 
make their grievances and complaints known to you, and whose 
religious belief is thus trilled, not to say interfered with, and 
liberty of conscience virtually denied. As innocent children, 
they are not aware of, nor do they yet see the snares that are 
laid for them, but as their Bishop and spiritual guide, I have 
taken up their defence and protest. 

I remain, with sentiments of high consideration, honorable sir, 
Your obedient, humble servant, 

fF. N. BLANCHET, 

Archbishop of Oregon City. 



9 



REPLY 



OF THE — 



SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR 



Department of the Interior, ) 
Washington, D. <?,, July 31, 1871. \ 

Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your 
communication of the 8th instant. 

It is proper for me to inform you that Father De Smet, of St. 
Louis, is the recognized agent and representative of the Roman 
Catholics in the appointment of Indian agents. 

Supposing you to be informed of the condition of things in 
Oregon, and that you are authorized to speak tor the Roman 
Catholic denomination of Christians, I have concluded, in defer- 
ence to your wishes, to decline accepting, for the present, the 
resignation of agent Charles Lafollet. 

The character of your letter seems to call for some remarks, 
which I will endeavor to make in such a spirit as to me seems 
necessary for the government of all those engaged in this w T ork. 

I desire, first, to inform you that the Indian agencies had all 
been assigned before I took possession of this office, the Grand 
Ronde among the others. 

These assignments were made, I know, with the purpose of 
fairness towards all denominations of Christians intended to be em- 
braced in the work of Indian civilization. That these assignments 
would prove acceptable, in every case, to all denominations, was 
not anticipated. It was hoped, however, that a spirit of Chris 
tian charity and comprehensive philanthropy, would induce 



10 

each denomination to accept the work assigned to it by the De- 
partment, with an earnest pffort to aid the Department and 
thereby forward the work placed in their hands. 

Whatever may be your individual sentiments in reference to 
the correctness or heresv of other denominations, designated by 
you as u dissenting sects," I presume from the general intelli- 
gence pervading your letter, you will be able to^ see that this 
Department cannot recognize or be governed by sentiments 
which would exclude from the work these other denominations. 

As a representative of the entire people of this great nation, 
this Department is bound to view these "dissenting sects," as 
you call them, in a more catholic, and, I hope, a more charita- 
ble spirit. We cannot, therefore, denounce them as " infidels." 

In reference to the recognition of the Roman Catholic Church, 
it has been, now is, and will continue to be the desire of this 
Department, to treat that branch of the Christian Church, in 
this work, like all others, in a spirit of fairness and liberality. 
Had I time to go into details, I could show you by the work 
assigned to the Roman Catholic Church, and by the changes 
made in that work, at their own instance, that this spirit has, 
heretofore, governed me; and I beg to assure you that I shall 
hereafter endeavor to give you evidence of the continuation of 
this spirit, by doing for your Church everything which fairness 
and equality, as far as I can arrive a,t them, demand. 
Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

C. DELANO, Secretary. 
Most Rev. F. N. Blanchet, Archbishop of Oregon City. 



11 



LETTER 



— TO THE — 



SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR. 



Portland, Oregon, Sept. 12, 1871. 

#OiVT a DELANO, SECRETARY OF INTERIOR: 

Honorable Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt 
of your letter ot July 31st, in reference to mine of the 8th previ- 
ous. Incessant and unavoidable occupations are the causes of 
my postponing so long the remarks which yours requires at my 
hands. 

To your information that Rev. Father DeSmet is the ac- 
knowledged agent and representative of the Roman Catholics in 
the appointment of Indian Agent, I beg leave to say that I 
never was apprised of said appointment, either by him or by 
the Department ; that, had I been consulted, I would have ob- 
jected, for the reason of preferring a direct correspondence with 
the Department to a circuitous and longer one, requiring much 
information to enable an agent to act efficiently ; and further, that 
my letter of July 8th, contained, besides the matter of Indian 
Agency, an important subject— that of our rights to certain 
Indian reservations, either ignored or acknowledged and pur- 
posely rejected, which could not be treated but with the di- 
rect and proper authority. 

Your supposing that I am informed of the condition of things 
in Oregon, and that lam authorized to speak for the Roman Cath- 



12 

olics.isexeu^able only on (he plea ofyourignQring that,bv thecon- 
fititution of our Church, every Catholic Bishop is, in his diocese 
what a father is in a family, a Governor in a State, and a minsi- 
ter m his office with the different- of being more strictlv obli^d 
in conscience, than these, to know the condition and wants of 
bis diocese; and that he is the one authorized to sneak for hi< 
spiritual children. Such is my condition in the whole State of 
Oregon, my diocese. What, could a stranger know. do. and 
say for me in that respect ? 

It may seem to you that -these assignments were made with 
the purpose of fairness towards all denominations of Christians 
intended to be embraced in the work of Indian civilization ;" but 
was it truly so ? Were the assignments made to such as bad the 
better and stronger rights ? Let us see. The President in his last 
message to Congress, announced that he had determined to <dve 
the agencies to such religious denominations "as had, heretofore, 
established missions among the Indians, and perhaps to some 
other denominations that would undertake the work, on the same 
terms," that is, as " missionary work." Such is the rule given 
by the President : first, to the prior right or founders of missions ; 
second, to some others. For fairness sake, therefore, and in 
order to put in practice that rule, the first assignments were be- 
ing made to the prior rights or founders of misssions at their 
own expenses, among the Indians, long before and without 
awaiting the aid of the Government. Has this been done? 
Have not, on the contrary, in many instances, prior rights and 
founders of missions been put aside, and replaced by strangers ; 
and assignments made to individuals, who, before the Govern- 
ment aid, had never thought of, never cared, never spent 
one single cent for the Indian civilization? The Indians of 
Puget Sound were taught the Catholic doctrine by Bishop 
Demers and myself as early as 1839 and the following vears. 
Are they all under our control ? Those of Yakima have "been, 
from 1847 to 1856, in the hands of Fathers Chirouze and D' 
Herbomez, and they are now under the rule of a Methodist 
Minister. Those of Wasco had been abandoned by the Meth- 
odist* and taught our doctrine from 1848 to 1857,and they have 
been passed over to the Methodists. Rev. Father Croquet 
founded the mission of Grand Ronde, built a Church and has 
been there nearly twelve years ; and it is still uncertain, whether 



13 

or not, the desires of the Indians and the rights of the priest shall 
be granted. We have also the prior right on Siletz and Alsea. 
The Indian^ of the old Spanish provinces, California, Colorado. 
Arizona, New Mexico (now a part of our great Republic) were 
converted some hundred years ago, to the Catholic faith. Are 
they all under Catholic control ? No, I am told the Indian 
missions of California are under the charge of Protestants. 
The Reformed Dutch, Presbyterians, and Jews, have been se- 
lected for the tribes of Arizona and New Mexico, who are Cath- 
olics;; and strange to say, a Spiritualist, has been appointed over 
the Pueblo Indians, in New Mexico, numbering over seven 
thousand, thoroughly civilized and instructed in the Catholic 
Religion. The Papagos in Arizona, numbering six thousand, 
converted by the Jesuit Fathers, industrious and self-supporting, 
have not a Catholic agent. The Pattawatomi Indians, in Kan- 
sas, are all Catholics ; they are so firm in their faith that a Bap- 
tist mission had to sell out and leave. They are not happy be- 
cause they have a Quaker Agent inflicted upon them. The 
Osages are also all Catholics, and they are also under a Quaker 
control. The Kansas are also Catholics, and yet have not an 
agent of their faith. The Menomonee have been Catholics since 
1835, and they have no Catholic Agent. The Oneidas are, a ma- 
jority of them, Catholics, and they are under the charge of 
some agent selected from our dissenting friends. The Chip- 
pewas of Lake Superior are cared for in a similar manner, not- 
withstanding the fact that they are Catholics. The Peorias and 
confederate bands are Catholics, but are also under Protestant 
influence. I fear I am tiring your patience by enumerating the 
many tribes that injustice has been done to. I pass over and 
*omit making mention of the right of the Indians, to have their 
desires of following the Catholic religion respected and attend- 
ed to. Let this suffice to prove that fairness and justice have 
been very far from being done to our Catholic missions in the 
distribution of assignments. 

You say "it was not anticipated that these assignments would 
be acceptable in every case, to all denominations." Snrely, it 
was not and could not ; for fairness and strict justice could not 
put aside the priority of teaching and establishing missions 
among the Indians ; for if it does, then it interferes with the 
liberty of conscience, by taking t away from the poor Indians 



14 

the frith they have already embraced, or at least, by not afford- 
ing the means to improve what they hold as sacred. 

You add : It was hoped, however, that a spirit of Christian 
charity and comprehensive philanthropy would induce each de- 
nomination to accept the work assigned to it by the Depart- 
ment, with an earnest effort to aid the Department and therebv 
forward the work placed in their hands." In supposing that 
each denomination, in accepting the work assigned to it, would 
do its best to aid the Department, and thereby forward the 
work placed in their hands ; and also, that some of them would 
be induced to do that in a spirit of Christian charity and com- 
prehensive philanthropy, rather than by a spirit of selfish inter- 
est and aggrandizement, I here solemnly declare and affirm that 
no one will and can do it more disinterestedly and economically-, 
more effectually and successfully, and with a greater and higher 
spirit of pure Christian charity and true philanthropy thaifour 
missionaries of the Catholic Church. One needs but open his 
e y<¥ to be convinced of my assertion. The Government is not 
ignorant ot the truth of this tact ; the Commissioner of Indian 
Affairs acknowledged it, in his annual report, in 1870, with the 
remarks that: " Xo appreciable progress has been made in 
taming or conciliating the wild and warlike Apaches in Arizona. 
It is claimed by person-, who doubtless are cognizant of the 
fact, that the Roman Catholic clergy are the only class of men 
they will not molest, and to whose counsels alone they will lis- 
ten." This frank acknowledgment proves incontestably the 
superiority of our Catholic missions among the Indians over 
those of Protestants ; and this being so, what then might or 
could be the plausible reason, why the Government, well aware 
of their inferior capacity, is nevertheless so much and always 
inclined to throw our Catholic Indian missions in the hands of 
Protestants ; and is also so backward, not to say so much op- 
j qsecL to our holding our Catholic missions and to our having 
the charge of those, to which we have the best title. 

You further say " that whatever may be your individual sen- 
timent- in reference to -he correctness or heresy of other de- 
nominations, designated by you as k dissenting sects,' I presume 
from the general intelligence pervading your letter, you will be 
able to .-ee that this Department cannot recognize, or be gov- 
erned by sentiments which would exclude from the work these 



15 

other denominations." Perfectly right, honorable sir. for when 
I was brought to deplore, in my last, the rather too lamentable 
position of our poor Indians, of being taught contradictory doc- 
trines by dissenting sects. I never intended to bring this De- 
partment to set in judgment between them ; for I have seen, 
as I do still clearly and perfectly see and understand, that the 
Department is forbidden by the Constitution to show any official 
preference to any denomination, to recognize them or be < r ov- 
erned by sentiments of exclusion ; but. in the meantime, I ac- 
knowledge also, in the Department, the strict obligation of re 
specting and protecting, not only the rights of each society, but 
also those of each individual, especially in reference to the lib- 
erty of conscience and the freedom of religion ; and that, not 
only in favor of the whites, but also in favor of the poor, ignor- 
ant and truly pitiable children of our forests. Is this sacred ob- 
ligation faithfully observed? Are all the rights of the Indians 
duly respected, their religious desires attended to, when Catho- 
lic agents are denied to them, and Protestant agents forced on 
Catholic Indian Missions, or on Indians Catholic at heart, among 
whom they exercise all the intluence of their position to impose 
on them their own religious system, or that of the religious de- 
nomination that employs them? Is that fairness, justice and 
liberty of conscience ? 

You say further : ;i As a representative of the entire people 
of this great nation, this Department is bound to view these 
t dissenting sects,' as you call them, in a more catholic, and I 
hope, a more charitable spirit ; we cannot denounce them as in- 
fidels." But in calling them dissenting sects, I have done noth- 
ing but what is generally done by all Catholics and non-Catho- 
lics, from the well known fact of the religious dissentions reigm 
inv anions them, and from their being; cut off, as branches, 
from the body of the true Church of Christ; for the word sect 
comes from the Latin secare^ sectum, to cut, to separate, which 
term can never be applied to the Roman Catholic Church, be- 
cause she was from the beginning and separated from no one. 
In speaking of the misfortune of the Indians in being taught 
contradictory doctrines by dissenting sects, I did not call them 
all infidels, but I said that they were taught by some who were 
not Christians, but infidels. That there are things which an indi- 
vidual can do, but the Government cannot, is evident. Thus, the 



16 

Government cannot sit in judgment and denounce anv one, or 
any sect as infidel, because not being a judge of conscience, it is 
only bound by the constitution to rule in temporal concerns 
and to view these dissenting sects with a general leaal and 
equal forbearance, which I could not call with vou, a more oath- 
olic and charitable spirit than mine, because it is no condesen- 
sion, no charity and no favor, but a strict obligation and an im- 
perious duty at the hands of the Government. 

And if by your words, a more, catholic and a more charitable spirit, vou 
mean that we are intolerant, I beg leave to explain that we' are 
indeed those who believe that the truth taught by our Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ, is but one, indivisible and" unchange- 
able; and that the dissenting sects and contradictory doctrines 
cannot be equally right and good, as our Protestant brethren 
affirm they are, for the denying of which we are called intolerant, 
unchantabk. But can there be found anywhere in the whole 
worid a society of Christians in which the exercise and practice 
of Christian charity and philanthropy are better, more generally 
and more effectually exercised and practised than in the Roman 
Catholic Church, both in the civil and Christian intercourse of 
life? It is true that in matters of faith and morals, we are 
strict, and appear to be intolerant, because we cannot go as far 
as our brethren of the other denominations. It is not our fault 
but rather, if I may say so, that of truth, which, being one' 
indivisible, unchangeable, is not subject to the will 0 f f men.' 
Therefore, there is not the least shadow of intolerance in adher- 
ing to the truth and refusing to part with it ; and, consequently, 
true charity to ourselves consists in adhering closely and in hold- 
ing steadfastly to the true saving faith when found ; and true 
charity to our neighbors consists in preaching it to them and 
also practising it. On the contrary, uncharitableness to their 
neighbor.-; and to themselves is evidently on the side of those 
who admit, believe and preach that contradictory doctrines are 
equally right and good. In this light, how can a Roman Cath- 
olic justly be called uncharitable and intolerant? 

I am sorry to say, and I hope you will be able to see by what 
I have said and proven, that the Indian Department, with all 
its desires of fairness and liberality lowards our Church, has 
nevertheless, failed in many instances to bring about its good 



17 

dispositions. Whose fault is it? Who thwarted its designs? 
he late Indian Commissioner might perhaps say. But I thank 
you most sincerely for what you have done by the work as- 
signed to our Church, by the changes made at our own instances, 
and tor the assurance you give me that the spirit of fairness 
and equality which animated you heretofore, will continue to 
govern you in future, and that you will give me evidence of 
your good disposition as far as you can arrive at our demands. 
But remember, honorable sir, that you cannot arrive at that 
point of fairness and justice if, by equality, you mean the nu- 
merical number of all denominations; for, by that reasoning 
you would give and pass our rights of priority of teaching and 
founding of missions, and also the rights of the Catholic Indians, • 
in the hands of those who have no right over them, and are hos- 
tile to our Catholic teaching ; and thereby you would interfere 
with the liberty of conscience. 

I said in my last, that, had due regard been paid to the earn- 
est desires of the Indians, and to the priority of our teaching, 
out of thirty-eight reservations, instead of four given to Catho- 
lics and thirty-four to Protestants, nearly three-quarters, or 
twenty-eight and one-half, would hava been our lot ; but now, it 
appears that the number of agencies is not only thirty-eight, but 
one hundred. Therefore, knowing well what has been done 
among the Indians of this coast by the late Bishop Demers and 
myself, and some other priests, from 183^ till the present time; 
and being also informed of what has been done by the Catholic 
clergy among the Indian tribes of the other parts of our great 
Republic, I do not hesitate to say that, reasoning on the same 
principle as before, if due regard and respect should have been 
paid to the priority of Catholic teaching and founding missions, 
and to the earnest desires of numerous tribes of Indians, out of 
one hundred reservations, instead of fourteen given to Catholics 
and eighty-six to Protestants, nearly three-quarters or seventy- 
five should have been allotted to our Church. No wonder of 
that, if one considers the zeal and self-denial of our unmarried 
missionaries. You may now see by this explanation, what kind 
of justice and fairness it would be to divide the agencies accord- 
ing to the numerical number of the various denominations ; and 
what a grevious prevarication we should s 8 be guilty of in consent- 



. 18 

ing to give away to the adversaries of our Church what is most 
sacred to us and to our Catholic Indians. 

I must add another w T ord, for I cannot conclude without 
speaking of the egregious injury offered to the clergy and Cath- 
olics of this country in the composition of the Indian Commis- 
sion and the proceedings of that Christian body. For there is a 
Catholic Church in these United States : it contains 8.000,000 
members. That number nearly equals that of the believers of 
all the other Christian denominations put together ; the exist- 
ence of the Catholic Church is, therefore, patent and staring in 
the face. 

Nevertheless, that Church, counting sixty-two Bishops, clergy 
by thousands, cathedrals and academies by hundreds and its 
members by millions ; that Church has been altogether ignored 
by the President in the composition of the Indian Commission ; 
so far and so much as, when we had a right to four among the 
eight members of the Commission, not even a single one has 
been conceded to our Church, to represent her, to plead and 
defend the rights of our Indian missions before that body. And 
likewise, that Indian Commission, acting on the same principle, 
has proceeded in the distribution of assignments or agencies as 
if our Church did not exist, or was of little or no consideration : 
witness the distribution of reservations on this coast, in the be- 
ginning, and all allotted to the Methodists ; in the other parts of 
MUM****** the country, many Satholie,*and even old Spanish Catholic 
reservations, placed under the control of Protestant, Jew, 
Spiritualist and infidel agents. How could this be done ? Has, 
then, the Government so soon forgotten how numerously and 
bravely the Catholics fought in the late war, and what they also 
did in the war of the independence. Is that giving equal jus- 
tice to all ? Ah, for the glory of our great nation, I deplore 
such unqualified religious partiality. Would to God that you 
had been in the Ministry at the time ! 

In conclusion, I renew, by the present, the protest I made in my 
last against the unjust repartition of the Indian reservations 
made on this coast ; and also, as the oldest Bishop in the United 
States, I do hereby solemnly protest, in my name and in the 
name of the other Catholic Bishops of the land, against the un- 
just giving and passing our Indian Catholic missions, all over 



19 

the country, into the hands and under the control of agents of 
a persuasion different from ours ; and, because I trust in your hon- 
esty, integrity and in the uprightness of your heart for justice, I 
appeal to your tribunal for the redress of our grievances and 
for the satisfaction and justice due to our claims in behalf of our 
poor Catholic Indians. 

In the meantime, please accept the assurance of my respects 
and the high considerations with which I have the honor to be, 
honorable sir, 

Your most obedient and humble servant, 

f F. N. BLANCHET, 

Archbishop of. Oregon City. 



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